HEADLINE

Issues

• A Summary of the 2011 Legislative Session

  A look at some of the bills that passed and failed during the 2011 session. All passed bills await Gov. Rick Scott’s approval.

   

  Consumers

  BIKE SAFETY (Failed)

  Says bicycle helmets worn by riders under 16 must meet federal safety requirements. (SB 118/HB 981)

  BOOSTER SEATS (Failed)

  Requires booster seats for children between 4 and 7 years old who are shorter than 4 feet 9 inches. (SB 238/HB 11)

  Criminal and Civil Justice

  BATH SALTS (Passed)

  Bans Methylenedioxypyrovalerone, or bath salts. (SB 1886/HB 1039)

  BESTIALITY (Passed)

  Bans, for the first time in Florida, abuse that involves sexual contact with an animal. (HB 125/SB 344)

  CIVIL CITATIONS (Passed)

  Requires program to issue civil citations to first-time juvenile offenders. (HB 997)

  CIVIL RIGHTS (Passed)

  Allows some ex-felons to apply for an occupational license and public employment before having rights restored. (SB 146/HB 449)

  CONCEALED WEAPONS (Passed)

  A concealed weapon permit holder who accidentally shows a gun would no longer be subject to penalty. Dramatically narrower than original bill, which allowed permit holders to carry their guns openly, including on elementary school and college campuses. (SB 234)

  DOCTORS AND GUNS (Passed)

  Limits instances when doctors can ask patients if they own firearms. (SB 155)

  INMATE RE-ENTRY (Failed)

  Allows more inmates who are near the end of their sentences to live in supervised residential areas after they prove their trustworthiness. (SB 1390)

  MANDATORY SENTENCES (Failed)

  Eliminates minimum mandatory sentences for nonviolent offenders convicted of drug offenses. (SB 1334/HB 917)

  PILL MILLS (Passed)

  Limits ability of doctors to dispense prescription drugs. Establishes stiff penalties for illegally dispensing prescription drugs. (SB 818/HB 7095)

  POLICE LINEUPS (Failed)

  Sets new guidelines for police lineups — for example, having them supervised by officers not involved in an investigation — to try to reduce the number of wrongful convictions. (SB 1206/HB 0821)

  PRETRIAL RELEASE PROGRAMS (Failed)

  Limits pretrial release programs to indigent defendants represented by public defenders. Sheriffs opposed bill, saying it would increase jail costs because fewer inmates could post bail. (SB 372/HB 1379)

  RED-LIGHT CAMERAS (Failed)

  Outlaws traffic infraction cameras at intersections, repealing legislation adopted last year. (SB 672/ HB 4087)

  SEXTING (Passed)

  Decriminalizes sending sexually explicit text messages, photos or videos via cell phone or other electronic devices by minors. The first offense would be punished by a fine or community service hours, with escalating penalties for each offense. (SB 888/HB 75)

  SYNTHETIC MARIJUANA (Passed)

  Outlaws synthetic marijuana. (SB204/HB39)

  TREATMENT BASED-DRUG COURTS (Signed into law)

  Expands treatment-based court programs as a sentencing option in eight counties, including Pinellas and Hillsborough. (SB 400)

  Education

  CHARTER SCHOOLS (Passed)

  Lifts barriers for charter schools to expand, in part by designating certain schools as “high-performing.” (SB 1546/HB 7195)

  CLASS SIZE (Passed)

  Changes the definition of the educational core curriculum, reducing the number of courses that must meet class-size caps. (SB 2120/HB 5101)

  EDUCATIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY (Passed)

  Catch-all bill that, among other things, limits gifts to school board members and their relatives to $50. (SB 1696/HB 1255)

  SAGGY PANTS (Passed)

  Requires school boards to prohibit students from wearing clothes that show their underwear or body parts. (HB 61/SB 228)

  SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERSHIP (Failed)

  Restructures the Miami-Dade County School Board to condense the number of single-member districts from nine to seven and add two at-large, countywide seats. (SB 778/HB 307)

  SCHOOL LUNCH (Passed)

  Transfers school food and nutrition programs from the Department of Education to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. (SB 1312/HB 7219)

  SCHOOL VOUCHERS — FLORIDA TAX CREDIT SCHOLARSHIPS (Passed)

  Removes a limitation on tax credits for companies that fund private-school vouchers for low-income students. (SB 1388/HB 965)

  SCHOOL VOUCHERS — MCKAY SCHOLARSHIPS (Passed)

  Allows more children to qualify for private-school vouchers under the McKay Scholarship program for students with disabilities. (SB 1656/HB 1329)

  SCHOOL VOUCHERS — OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIPS (Passed)

  Allows more students to qualify to move to other public schools by expanding the definition of a “failing” school. (SB 1822/HB 1331)

  TEACHER TENURE (Signed into law)

  Teacher evaluations will be based in part on student test scores, and administrators will be able to more easily fire teachers with weak evaluations. (SB 736/HB 7019)

  VIRTUAL SCHOOLS (Passed)

  Expands online school offerings by allowing more students to enroll in virtual school and letting private companies participate in online education. Requires incoming high school students take at least one online course before graduating. (SB 1620/HB 7197)

  PROFESSOR TENURE (Failed)

  Ends tenure in the state’s community colleges. (HB 7193)

  Energy and environment

  BILLBOARDS (Failed)

  Lets billboard companies decide whether they want to pay into a fund for planting trees — instead of requiring them to — when they get permits to chop down trees that belong to taxpayers. (SB 1570)

  CITIZEN CHALLENGES (Passed)

  Reverses state’s “burden of proof” requirement that potential polluters show their project won’t contaminate air or water. Replaces it with requirement that citizens and other challengers provide proof that project will harm air or water. (HB 993/SB 1382)

  GROWTH MANAGEMENT (Passed)

  Shifts review and regulation for development from the state to local governments with repeal of 1985 Growth Management Act. (HB 7207)

  OCEAN OUTFALLS (Failed)

  Gives South Florida counties more time and leeway to fulfill requirements limiting the discharge of rainwater and treated sewage into the Atlantic Ocean. (SB 796/HB 613)

  RENEWABLE ENERGY (Failed)

  Allows utilities to raise rates $377 million, or as much as $2.60 a month for average customers, every year for the next five years to build solar or biomass renewable energy plants and bypass the Public Service Commission. (SB 7082)

  SEAPORTS (Passed)

  Gives Citrus County until July 2014 to apply for state funding to study feasibility of a “Port Citrus” on the old barge canal. (SB 524/HB 283)

  SEWAGE AS FERTILIZER (Failed)

  Lifts not-yet-implemented ban on spraying treated waste from septic tanks as fertilizer on farmers’ fields. (HB 1479)

  Ethics and elections

  BLIND TRUSTS (Failed)

  Requires the governor, lieutenant governor and three Cabinet members to place their personal assets into blind trusts. (SB 86)

  CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS (Failed)

  Increases the $500 maximum campaign contribution to $10,000 for gubernatorial candidates, $5,000 for Cabinet races and $2,500 for state legislative candidates. (SB 1690)

  ELECTED OFFICIAL RECALL (Failed)

  Constitutional amendment proposals to allow recalls of state officials either through petition or statute. (HJR 785/HB 787)

  ELECTIONS (Passed)

  Reduces days of early voting from 14 to eight, requires some voters who have moved to cast provisional ballots, tightens the time for third-party groups to submit voter registration forms and reduces the time that signatures on citizen-led ballot initiatives are valid. (SB 2086/HB 1355)

  ETHICS (Failed)

  Bars a lawmaker from voting on legislation that would “inure to his or her special private gain or loss” or to an employer, relative, business associate or board upon which the official sits. (SB 2088/HB 1071)

  GIFT BAN (Failed)

  Allows lobbyists to provide $25 worth of food and drink or gifts to lawmakers. Items worth more than $25 up to $100 would be reported, and anything over $100 would require approval of Senate president or House speaker. (SB 1322)

  Gambling

  CASINO RESORTS (Failed)

  Allows for development of resort casinos in up to five areas of state. (SB 2050/HB 1415)

  GAMBLING COMMISSION (Failed)

  Consolidates lottery and pari-mutuels; imposes new regulations on sweepstakes gambling operations. (SB 666)

  GREYHOUND RACING (Failed)

  Frees dog track owners from requirement that they hold certain number of live races each year to maintain licenses for a casino or card room. (SB 1594/HB 1145)

  ONLINE POKER (Failed)

  Regulates online poker games by allowing Floridians to play with other Floridians through an Intranet system operated out of parimutuel card rooms. (SB 812)

  SWEEPSTAKES CAFES (Failed)

  Prohibits use of simulated gaming for promotional purposes. (HB 217)

  Government and Rulemaking

  GOVERNMENT PENSIONS (Passed)

  Local government employees face new limits on sick leave and overtime under a compromise plan. (SB 1128/HB 7241)

  GUN CONTROL (Passed)

  Prohibits local governments from regulating firearms. (HB 45)

  PENSION REFORM (Passed)

  Employees in the Florida Retirement System will pay three percent of their salaries into their retirement accounts, face higher retirement ages and their retirement accounts will no longer collect cost-of-living-adjustment starting July 1. (SB 2100, HB 1405)

  CABINET RULES REPEALS (Failed)

  Provision in rulemaking bill would have allowed Cabinet members during their first six months in office to repeal rules if they are obsolete or if they conflict with policies members are trying to implement was removed from bill that passed. (HB 993)

  Health care and human services

  ABORTION — CHOOSE LIFE (Passed)

  Proceeds from Choose Life license plates will go to Choose Life, Inc., to assist pregnant women, instead of counties. (SB 196/HB 501)

  ABORTION — HEALTH CARE EXCHANGES (Passed)

  Health care plans created through the federal health care law cannot offer coverage for abortions. (SB 1414/HB 97)

  ABORTION — PARENTAL NOTIFICATION (Passed)

  Requires minors seeking a judicial waiver for parental notification of an abortion to get the waiver in district court rather than a wider-reaching appeals court. (SB 1770/HB 1247)

  ABORTION — THIRD-TRIMESTER BAN (Failed)

  Expands ban on third-trimester abortions to include viability of the fetus. Doctors who perform abortions would be required to receive ethics training. (SB 1748/HB 1397)

  ABORTION — ULTRASOUND (Passed)

  Women preparing to undergo an abortion must be offered the opportunity to have the results and images of an ultrasound explained to them. Woman can decline to see the image. (SB 1744/HB 1127)

  MEDICAID (Passed)

  Reforms place the program’s three million recipients into managed care. HMOs and other large, managed-care networks will bid with the state on managing any number of 11 regions in state. Also makes it more difficult for recipients to sue Medicaid doctors and hospitals. (SB 1972/HB 7107, 7109)

  NURSING HOMES (Failed)

  Provides a $300,000 limit on pain and suffering damages in wrongful death cases against nursing homes. Requires the court to hold a hearing before allowing punitive damages. (HB 661)

  SALE OR LEASE OF A PUBLIC HOSPITAL (Failed)

  Requires a judge — or in some cases, voters — to sign off on the proposed sale or lease of a public hospital. (SB 1448/HB 619)

  SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY (Passed)

  Extends state lawsuit protection to university doctors teaching at public hospitals. (SB 1676/HB 1393)

  Insurance

  AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE (Failed)

  Among other things, bill gives insurers 90 days to investigate auto accidents claims for possible fraud before paying claims. (SB 1930/HB 1411)

  AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE (Failed)

  Limits attorney’s fees in personal injury protection lawsuits. (SB 1694/HB 967)

  CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE (Failed)

  Allows state-run insurer to raise rates by up to 25 percent. The current maximum

  10 percent. (SB 1714/HB 1243)

  PROPERTY INSURANCE (Passed)

  Allows insurance companies to offer comprehensive sinkhole coverage for primary structures only. Sets a three-year window for filing claims for damage caused by hurricanes and windstorms. (SB 408/HB 803)

  Military Affairs

  COLLEGE CHOICE (Failed)

  Allows veterans who lived in Florida four years before entering the armed forces to be admitted to any state bachelor’s program of their choice. (SB 894/HB 693)

  DRIVER’S LICENSE FEES (Failed)

  Reduces driver’s license fees for certain disabled veterans. (SB 368/HB 123)

  PROPERTY TAXES (Passed)

  Extends certain property tax breaks to disabled veterans 65 years or older who have a service-connected disability but were not Florida residents before entering service. (SB 592/HB 439)

  STATE PARKS (Passed)

  Gives parents of deceased veterans lifetime annual passes to state parks. (SB 236/HB 95)

  TUITION (Failed)

  Gives any veteran in the country the in-state tuition rate to attend one of Florida’s colleges or universities. (SB 826/683)

  VETERANS COURT (Failed)

  Allows counties to develop jail-diversion programs for veterans charged with certain crimes as a result of traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder or substance use stemming from military combat. (SB 138)

  VETERANS DAY (Failed)

  Requires schools to observe Veterans Day as a holiday and not hold classes. (SB 1062/HB 375)

  Rick Scott Priorities

  DRUG TESTS FOR WELFARE RECIPIENTS (Passed)

  Requires drug screening for adult welfare recipients, who will lose benefits for a year if they test positive. (HB 353)

  DAUBERT STANDARD OF EXPERT TESTIMONY (Failed)

  Changes standards by which judges admit expert testimony. (SB 822/HB 391)

  GOOD SAMARITAN PROTECTIONS (Passed)

  Protects from civil litigation people who offer temporary housing, food, water or electricity to an emergency first-responder or immediate family members of an emergency first-responder. (SB 450/HB 215)

  IMMIGRATION (Failed)

  Requires some public or private employers to use the federal government’s E-Verify system, and changes rules for law enforcement to check the immigration status of suspects or inmates. (SB 2040/HB 7089)

  Taxes and Budget

  BUDGET (Passed)

  The $69.7 billion plan funds state government for the 2011-2012 year. (SB 2000)

  CORPORATE INCOME TAX (Passed)

  A tax break of $1,100 a year on average for 15,000 small businesses as Republicans vowed that it will be the first step in a multi-year effort to cut the state’s annual $2 billion corporate tax. (HB 7185)

  ONLINE TRAVEL TAX (Failed)

  Shields online travel companies from paying taxes on retail price of hotel rooms they sell and allows them to continue to pay based on wholesale cost. (SB 376 /HB 493)

  PROPERTY TAXES (Passed)

  Requires property owners to pay 75 percent of their taxes while they appeal their property appraisals. (HB 281)

  UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION (Passed)

  Pays for a tax cut for businesses by cutting state benefits for unemployed Floridians. Instead of making the maximum $275 weekly benefit available for 26 weeks, the state would use a sliding scale based on the unemployment rate. Benefits would be available for no more than 23 weeks and no less than 12 weeks. (HB 7005)

  Transportation

  BILLBOARD PERMITS (Failed)

  Provision sets more restrictive guidelines for billboard permit fees charged by counties and cities. (HB 1363)

  ENDING SUNPASS DISCOUNT (Failed)

  Eliminates discount on prepaid tolls for those who buy SunPass Cards (SB 1252)

  Constitutional amendments (require voter approval in 2012)

  ABORTION (Passed)

  Prohibits use of taxpayer money for abortions. (SJR 1538/HJR 1179)

  COURT REVAMP (Passed)

  Lets Senate confirm new justices and makes it easier for the Legislature to void court rules. Also gives House access to now-confidential investigations of judicial misconduct in advance of impeachment proceedings. (HJR 7111)

  FUNDING FOR RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS (Passed)

  Does away with provision prohibiting the use of public money for religious institutions and adds language prohibiting the government from denying funding based on religion. (SJR 1218/HJR 1471)

  INSURANCE MANDATES (Passed)

  Prohibits government from compelling someone to buy health insurance. (SJR 2/HJR1)

  MIAMI-DADE CHARTER (Failed)

  Lets Miami-Dade lawmakers place county charter amendments directly on the ballot. (HJR 1321)

  PROPERTY TAXES (Passed)

  Provides additional tax breaks for first-time homebuyers, businesses and second-home owners. (HJR 381)

  REVENUE CAP (Passed)

  Limits growth of state revenues to new formula based on changes in population and inflation. (SJR 958)

  Veto Override

  LEADERSHIP FUNDS

  Allows leaders in the House and Senate to operate campaign accounts that can raise and spend unlimited amounts of cash. (HB 1207)

• Deficits and Default

   

  Deficit and Default

  Talking Points: A Victory for America

   

  ·        President Obama has announced that bipartisan leaders have come to an agreement that will cut the deficit and avert default – a default that would have had catastrophic consequences for the American economy.

  ·        That agreement is a victory for American families because:

  o It extends the debt limit to the year 2013, getting rid of the cloud of uncertainty looming over the American economy and guaranteeing that no one can use the possibility of default right now or in the coming months for political gain.

  o It will boost global confidence in the American economy by establishing a framework for balanced fiscal discipline in the long term.

  o It guarantees that America can meet all its obligations – including Americans’ monthly Social Security payments, veterans’ benefits, and the contracts our government has signed with thousands of businesses across the country.

   

  ·        Details of the Debt Agreement. President Obama said from the start that any solution to avert default and achieve significant deficit reduction had to have the support of Democrats and Republicans. After working toward an agreement for months, bipartisan members of the House and Senate have come to an agreement that includes:

  o A down payment on deficit reduction that includes historic long-term spending reductions, including almost $1 trillion in spending cuts. Those cuts are set out in a way that avoids damaging our economic recovery. They are balanced between domestic and defense spending, and they protect essential initiatives like aid for college students.

  o An expedited process to achieve balanced deficit reduction. The agreement establishes a longer term process to achieve another $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction with a committee structure that is going to put everything on the table, including reforms to taxes and entitlements. To stop either side from utilizing procedural tricks that would stop Congress from acting, the recommendations of the committee will get fast track authority,meaning they can’t be filibustered or amended.

  o Setting the stage for a balanced agreement that includes revenues. American families and an increasing number of Republicans are united in agreement that any deficit reduction deal has to be balanced and must include revenue.

  § Even the Speaker of the House was willing to consider an agreement with $800 billion in revenues, and almost 20 Republican Senators lent their support to the Gang of Six framework, which included more than $2 trillion worth of revenue.

  § If the Committee is not able to achieve meaningful balanced deficit reduction that includes revenue-increasing tax reform for the wealthiest Americans by the end of 2012, President Obama can put his veto pen to work to raise nearly $1 trillion from the wealthiest Americans by vetoing any extension of the Bush tax cuts for the most well-off individuals.

  o A demonstrated enforcement method. The enforcement mechanism in the agreement will force cuts that are painful enough to both sides that Congress will have to act. By their nature, enforcement mechanisms should include aspects that neither side supports in order to guarantee action is taken.

  § The enforcement mechanism in this agreement does just that. If Congress doesn’t act, then beginning in 2013 there are going to be $1.2 trillion in spending cuts through 2021 – 50 percent from domestic spending and 50 percent from defense spending.

  § Low income programs such as Medicaid and Social Security and Medicare benefits would be exempt. Cuts to Medicare would be capped and limited to the provider side.

  § The last time such an enforcement method was put to use – with 50 percent domestic and 50 percent defense reductions – the threat of defense reductions helped spur the bipartisan budget agreement of 1990 under President George H. W. Bush, an agreement that included revenues as well as spending cuts.

   

  o An agreement in keeping with President Obama’s commitment to shared sacrifice. This agreement does not accept entitlement reform without giving equal consideration to revenue-increasing tax reform, and it guarantees that low-income and middle class families won’t be forced to carry the burden of deficit reduction alone.

   

  o       We haven’t put this challenge behind us yet. Leaders of both parties are now taking the framework agreement to their caucuses, and bipartisan members of Congress have to vote on this agreement in the next two days.

  o       If Congress doesn’t act, America could default on its obligations for the first time in our history, not because we aren’t able to pay our nation’s bills, but because we don’t have a Triple A political system to match our bond rating.

  o       Those who say the tough choices included in the framework agreement aren’t good enough should know that a default on America’s debt would have catastrophic economic consequences and would lead to real hardship for Americans across the country – with a tax increase in the form of higher interest rates on Americans’ mortgages, car loans, and credit cards as well as delays in payments to America’s seniors, the disabled, veterans, and small companies that do business with our federal government.

   

• American Jobs Act

  Talking Points for September 10, 2011

  Thank you all for your ongoing support to our organization and President Obama. We want to continue our work in keeping our Florida team on the same page, and so I am passing along our latest sets of talking points.

  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Organizing for America-Floridaʼs Press Assistant Sabrina Caprioli at CaprioliS@DNC.org.

   

  American Jobs Act

   

  The President’s bill would create more jobs right now because the American people demand immediate action. As soon as Congress passes it, businesses will be able to hire more workers and middle-class families will be able to keep more of what they earn.

  This proposal for immediate job creation contrasts sharply with Republican plans that rely on the same old trickle-down economics that have hurt families for decades – the theory that promises jobs later if we just give a little bit more to the wealthiest and to the biggest corporations at the expense of the middle class.

  President Obama’s bill, the American Jobs Act, is what the American people are looking for: common sense, not controversy. It’s based on ideas both Democrats and Republicans have long supported. There is no excuse for Congress not to pass it right away.

  The American Jobs Act is based on some basic values that helped make the American economy the envy of the world and helped build the American Middle Class. The idea that responsibility is rewarded, hard work pays and everyone, from Wall Street to Main Street plays by the same rules. We are at our strongest when every American does his or her fair share and everyone gets a fair shake.

   

  OUR VALUES

   

   Families are working hard every day to meet their responsibilities. The question President Obama is asking Congress today is whether Washington will meet its own. America knows how to create jobs. The question is whether Congress will put people ahead of politics.

   

   The middle class has been under attack for decades and short-sighted politics have thwarted a full recovery for too long. The American people know this crisis wasn’t created in a day and won’t be solved overnight – but they demand we start moving in the right direction.

   

   The President knows that to restore economic security, we have to rebuild the economy in a balanced manner – one that makes sure everyone from Wall Street to Main Street plays by the

  same rules, where hard work and responsibility are rewarded and cheating is penalized. That’s the American way.

   

  WHAT WE’RE FOR

   

   The President is promising that if Congress acts and politicians put party aside, we can create middle-class jobs today.

   

   Republicans in Washington and those running for President are rejecting bipartisanship and pretending that more handouts to big corporations and the wealthiest will grow the economy. The American people aren’t buying it.

   

   The Republican candidates for President have run to the right and embraced Tea Party policies like:

  Ø   Laying off teachers, nurses and police officers and cutting investments in our schools, roads and hospitals,

  Ø   Repealing the protections put in place to prevent another financial crisis,

  Ø   Supporting the Republican budget plan that would end Medicare as we know it, erode Social Security, and eliminate millions of jobs across America, and

  Ø   Providing more tax breaks for special interests and tax cuts for the wealthiest while opposing a payroll tax cut for working Americans.

• Campaign 2012: President's Accomplishments

  “Accomplishments of President Barack Obama”

  
  Since coming into office on January 21, 2009, President Barack Obama has:
  
  1. Signed an Executive Order on government contracting to fight waste and abuse.
  
  2. Signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, restoring basic protections against pay discrimination for women and other workers.
  
  3. Renewed dialogue with NATO and other allies and partners on strategic issues.
  
  4. Announced a plan to responsibly end the war in Iraq.
  
  5. Provided funding to families of fallen soldiers have expenses covered to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB.
  
  6. Ended media blackout on war casualties and the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB.
  
  7. Signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
  
  8. Launched Recovery.gov to track spending from the Recovery Act, an unprecedented step to provide transparency and    accountability through technology.
  
  9. Announced the "Making Home Affordable" home refinancing plan.
  
  10. Launched a $15 billion plan to boost lending to small businesses.
  
  11. Invested heavily in education both as a way to provide jobs now and lay the foundation for long-term prosperity.
  
  12. Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with more than $1.4 billion to improve services to America’s Veterans.
  
  13. Signed an Executive Order establishing the White House Office of Urban Affairs.
  
  14. Limited lobbyist's access to the White House.
  
  15. Issued an Presidential Memorandum to restore scientific integrity in government decision-making.
  
  16. Answered questions at the first online town hall from the White House that were submitted and voted on transparently by the public at WhiteHouse.gov:
  
  17. Established a central portal for Americans to find service opportunities

  .
  18. Launched Business.gov – enabling conversation and online collaboration between small business owners, government representatives and industry experts in discussion forums relevant to starting and managing a business.
  
  19. Appointed the first ever Federal Chief Information Officer to provide management and oversight over federal IT spending.
  
  20. Signed the Children’s Health Insurance Reauthorization Act on February 4, 2009, which provides quality health care to 11 million kids – 4 million who were previously uninsured.
  
  21. Issued an Executive Order repealing the Bush-Era restrictions on embryonic stem cell research.
  
  22. Signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first piece of comprehensive legislation aimed at improving the lives of Americans living with paralysis.
  
  23. Announced creation of a Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record for members of the U.S. Armed Forces to improve quality of medical care.
  
  24. Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date.
  
  25. Committed to phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane and other outdates weapons systems, which weren't even used or needed in Iraq/Afghanistan.
  
  26. Provided federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research.
  
  27. Provided new federal funding for science and research labs.
  
  28. Played a lead role in G-20 Summit that produced a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis.
  
  29. Signed the Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act to stop fraud and wasteful spending in the defense procurement and contracting system.
  
  30. Ordered the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay and a review of our detention and interrogation policy, and prohibited the use of torture.
  
  31. Appointed Special Envoys for Climate Change, Southwest Asia, the Middle
  East, Sudan, and a Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
  
  32. Empowered states to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards.
  
  33. Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect.
  
  34. Increased minority access to capital.
  
  35. Developed a comprehensive new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan that will help defeat Al Qaeda and authorized the deployment of more than 21,000 troops to Afghanistan.
  
  36. Signed the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act which gives the federal government more tools to investigate and prosecute fraud, from lending to the financial system, and creates a bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission to investigate the financial practices that brought us to this point.
  
  37. Signed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, expanding on the Making Home Affordable Program to help millions of Americans avoid preventable foreclosures, providing $2.2 billion to help combat homelessness, and helping to stabilize the housing market for everybody.
  
  38. Increased, for the first time in more than a decade, the fuel economy standards for Model Year 2011 for cars and trucks so they will get better mileage, saving drivers money and spurring companies to develop more innovative products.
  
  39. Issued a Presidential Memorandum to the Department of Energy to implement more aggressive efficiency standards for common household appliances, like dishwashers and refrigerators. Through this step, over the next three decades, we’ll save twice the amount of energy produced by all the coal-fired power plants in America in any given year.
  
  40. Unveiled a program on Earth Day 2009 to develop the renewable energy projects on the waters of our Outer Continental Shelf that produce electricity from wind, wave, and ocean currents. These regulations will enable, for the first time ever, the nation to tap into our ocean’s vast sustainable resources to generate clean energy in an environmentally sound and safe manner.
  
  41. Announced a new U.S.-Mexico border initiative.
  
  42. Concluded cyberspace policy review.
  
  43. Announced a strategy to address the international nuclear threat.
  
  44. Established a new "U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue".
  
  45. Announced new policy steps towards Cuba.
  
  46. Increased minority access to capital.
  
  47. Issued a Presidential Memorandum on the Freedom of Information Act instructing the Attorney General to issue new guidelines to the government implementing those same principles of openness and transparency in the processing of FOIA requests.
  
  48. Funded the design of a new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History scheduled to open on the National Mall in 2015.
  
  49. The Executive Order on Presidential Records brings those principles to presidential records by giving the American people greater access to these historic documents, severely curtailing the ability to use executive privilege to shield those documents.
  
  50. Signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, a hallmark piece of legislation.
  
  51. Signed the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act to protect Americans from unfair and deceptive credit card practices.
  
  52. Signed an Executive Order establishing a White House Council on Women and Girls to provide a coordinated Federal response to the challenges confronted by women and girls and to ensure that all Cabinet and Cabinet-level agencies consider how their policies and programs impact women and families.
  
  53. Launched a U.S. financial and banking rescue plan.
  
  54. Ordered secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere to be closed.
  
  55. Ended the previous policy; the US now has a no torture policy and is in compliance with the Geneva Convention standards.
  
  56. Launched U.S. Auto industry rescue plan.
  
  57. Provided better body armor to our troops.
  
  58. Authorized cutting the missile defense program by $1.4 billion in 2010.
  
  59. Restarted the nuclear nonproliferation talks and building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols.
  
  60. Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic.
  
  61. Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions, and addressed the U.N. Climate Change Conference.
  
  62. Supported the first steps of a legally-binding treaty to reduce mercury emissions worldwide.
  
  63. Visited more countries and met with more world leaders than any president in his first six months in office.
  
  64. Managed several natural disasters successfully, including severe winter ice storms and flooding in several states.
  
  65. Provided new car tax credit.
  
  66. Provided attractive tax write-offs for those who buy hybrid automobiles.
  
  67. Purchased fuel efficient American-made fleet of vehicles for the federal government.
  
  68. Endorsed Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2009 that would close offshore tax havens.
  
  69. Nominated Sonia Sotomayor to Supreme Court. She was confirmed and becomes the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice.
  
  70. Helped reverse a downward spiral of the stock market. On January 19, 2009, the last day of President Bush's presidency, the Dow closed at 8,218.22. Today, the Dow closed at 10,309.24.
  
  71. Earned an unprecedented success rate of 96.7% on winning congressional votes on issues where he took a position. He did even better than legendary arm-twister Lyndon Johnson who had a 93% success rate in 1965.
  
  72. Provided affordable, high-quality child care to working families.
  73. Restored America's reputation as a global leader that will do the "right thing" in world affairs.
  
  74. Issued an executive order to create the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.
  
  75. Increased funding for student loans and pell grants for 2010 students.
  
  76. Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals.
  
  77. Provided tax credit to workers thus cutting taxes for 95% of America's working families.
  
  78. Cracked down on companies that deny sick pay, vacation and health insurance to workers by abusing the employee classification of independent contractor. Such companies also avoid paying Social Security, Medicare and unemployment insurance taxes for those workers
  
  79. Signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act that made it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.
  
  80. Appointed the first Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy.
  
  81. Signed the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act authorizing advance appropriations for the Department of Veterans Affairs by providing two-fiscal year budget authority thus enabling better medical care for veterans.  Endorsed by the American Legion, American Veterans, Blinded Veter...ans Association, Disabled American Veterans, Jewish War Veterans, Military Officers Association, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Paralyzed Veterans of America and Vietnam Veterans of America.
  
  82. Held impromptu press conference to urge Congress to investigate Anthem Blue Cross and other corporate health insurance companies that raise premiums in high amounts without explanation. Rep. Henry Waxman launches probe. In this case, Anthem Blue Cross wanted to raise premiums 39%. They have now put the increase on hold for two months (as of February 2010). Legislation preventing such increases pending.
  
  83. Designated $1.5 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to fund programs at local housing finance agencies in the states hardest hit by the housing crisis: California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Michigan. The MBA forecasts that foreclosures will peak in the last quarter of 2010.
  
  84. Protected 300,000 education jobs, such as teachers, principals, librarians, and counselors through the Recovery Act that would have otherwise been lost.
  
  85. Extended discounted COBRA health coverage for the nation's unemployed from 9 months to 15 months. Workers laid off between September 1, 2008 and February 28, 2010 qualify.
  
  
  86. Extended unemployment benefits for 2,000,000 unemployed Americans by 20 weeks. At the time the bill was signed 7,000 unemployed Americans were losing their unemployment benefits each day.
  
  87. Eliminated federal funding for abstinence-only education which was significantly increased during the Bush Administration to $176 million annually.
  
  88. Rescinded the Global Gag Rule.
  
  89. Appointed the most diverse Cabinet in history including more women appointees than any other incoming president.
  
  90. Committed to no permanent military bases in Iraq through the Defense Authorization Act. For your reference.
  
  91. Provided tax credits to first-time home buyers through the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 to revitalize the U.S. housing market.
  
  92. Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs the largest spending increase in 30 years to improve medical facilities and national cemeteries, and to assist states in acquiring or constructing state nursing homes and extended care facilities.
  
  93. Strengthened the Endangered Species Act.
  
  94. Empowered states that legalized medical marijuana to regulate themselves. Fourteen states have allowed some use of marijuana for medical purposes: Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Maryland, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
  
  95. Enhanced earth mapping.
  
  96. Increased funding for national parks and forests in 2010, and plans to do it again for FY 2011.
  
  97. Changed failing war strategy in Afghanistan.
  
  98. Allocated special funding to the Labor Department to provide green job training to veterans.
  
  99. Allocated funding to states and the Department of Homeland Security to save thousands of police or firefighter jobs from being cut during the recession.
  
  100. Created and sustained 2.1 million jobs and stimulated the economy 3.5% [as of December 31, 2009] through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.